All Things Sensory by Harkla
Rachel Harrington, COTA/L, AC & Jessica Hill, COTA/L
Rachel Harrington and Jessica Hill, are two passionate Certified Occupational Therapy Assistants who answer your questions related to all things sensory, occupational therapy, parenting, self-care, nutrition, and health, from a therapist’s perspective. Providing raw, honest, fun ideas, and strategies, for parents and families to implement into daily life. Great for those who work with children with sensory processing disorder, special needs, autism, and ADHD. This podcast is brought to you by Harkla. At Harkla, our goal is to help those with special needs live happy and healthy lives.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Jun 5, 2024 • 21min
#311 - Teaching You How to Set Up Obstacle Courses that Target Multiple Goals
Have you ever wondered why we always recommend obstacle courses for kids during therapy and at home?It’s because they have so many benefits!Today’s episode is all about WHY obstacle courses are so beneficial and how to set up obstacle courses for all children!We talk about our favorite equipment pieces to use, how to identify the number of steps in the obstacle course, how to add a function-based play component, how to add different transitions into it, and MORE!We’d love to answer your quest...
May 29, 2024 • 19min
#310 - Answering Your Sensory and OT Questions
In this episode, we are answering your questions. We talk about strategies for helping an 8 year old with toileting skills, toddler sleep challenges, games that help with teaching the Zones of Regulation, how to help a 4 year old wake up easier, tips for parents who are ‘touched out’ with their sensory seeking child, and ideas for a toddler who seems extra clumsy.We’d love to answer your questions on the podcast! Fill out this form -> https://harkla.typeform.com/to/ItWxQNP3Brought To You B...
May 22, 2024 • 41min
#309 - In-Home Neurofeedback Training with Vital Neuro Headphones ft. Co-founder Alex Doman
Alex Doman is an entrepreneur, bestselling author, psychoacoustic music producer, and TEDx speaker with more than thirty years of experience in neurotechnology. His mission is to help others achieve their optimal potential and become the best version of themselves. The third generation in a family of pioneers dedicated to improving people's brain performance for over seventy-five years, Alex founded Advanced Brain Technologies and co-founded Sleep Genius and Vital Neuro. Doman’s production cr...
May 15, 2024 • 34min
#308 - Simple, Effective Heavy Work Activities in the School Setting
We received a question from an OT practitioner working in the schools: What are some simple proprioceptive activities that I can do with my students that don’t require a lot of space or equipment?Tune in for a discussion all about proprioception and get some new ideas for using heavy work and deep pressure in the school setting.Make sure to check out all of our links below!We’d love to answer your questions on the podcast! Fill out this form -> https://harkla.typeform.com/to/ItWxQNP3Brough...
May 8, 2024 • 41min
#307 - Social Emotional Learning, Sensory Corners, and Fidgets with Jewelisa Blanks, M.Ed, Founder of Gifts of Joy
Jewelisa Blanks, a respected public speaker and seasoned educator, has devoted her professional life to empowering teachers and students. A proud graduate of The Ohio State University, Jewelisa spent over seven years serving in the public education sector, fostering a deep understanding of the field over her ten years of educational experience. Leveraging her knowledge and experience, she has drawn on cutting-edge emotional health research to affect meaningful change within the education syst...
May 1, 2024 • 30min
#306 - Curious About Primitive Reflexes? Answering Common Questions!
We are answering questions that we’ve received inside our primitive reflex digital course, Assessment And Integration Of Primitive Reflexes For Improved Independence In Daily Activities.One of our favorite things about our digital course is that you can ask questions inside the course, start discussions, and get feedback!In today’s episode, we talk about how to base a treatment plan and goals around retained primitive reflexes, how to test for reflexes when the child struggles with following ...
Apr 24, 2024 • 52min
#305 - The Future of Preventative Health Through Gene Snips with Dr. Jade Dandy, NMD, MSiMR
Dr. Jade Dandy is an Idaho native and fell in love with Naturopathic medicine at a young age. She graduated from National University of Natural Medicine (NUMN) in 2015. Focusing on chronic illness, she earned her Doctorates in Natural Medicine as well as Masters of Science in Integrative Medicine Research. Dr. Dandy is an advocate for her patients’ health journey, integrating western medicine with time-tested natural medicine to bring patients back to optimal health. It is her strong belief t...
Apr 17, 2024 • 47min
#304 - Therapist Mentoring Session: Setting Up a Sensory Diet for Teletherapy Clients in Schools
Check out our Autism Acceptance Month Sale, now through April 30, 2024 https://harkla.co/pages/aam-saleSave 15% on all sensory productsSave 20% on all digital productsWe recently completed a 2-on-1 mentoring session with a fellow OT practitioner.We discussed some simple activities to do with her young child as well as brainstormed ideas for her teletherapy clients! Some of the topics include: seating accommodations, getting outside, teaching teens about technology, executive functioning,...
Apr 10, 2024 • 16min
#303 - You Should Be Skeptical if Someone Says They Will "Cure" Your Child's Neurological Diagnosis
April is OT Month and we’re celebrating with a HUGE sale on our digital courses!If you’re an occupational therapy practitioner, you can earn your CE with our courses that are approved through AOTA!Check out the SALE here - https://harkla.co/pages/ot-month-saleSale ends April 14, 2024 at midnight!We received a message in IG asking about Brain Balance and how their company claims to “cure” ADHD.We thought this was interesting, so we wanted to talk about it!There are many things that we don’t sa...
Apr 3, 2024 • 21min
#302 - Therapy Regression: What is it and Why Does it Happen?
Check out our newly re-launched digital course: Early Intervention Blueprint: Sensory and Developmental Milestones for Infants and ToddlersDesigned for new and expecting parents, as well as therapists and professionals working with children ages birth - 4 years.OTs and OTAs - earn 11 CEU contact hours through AOTA with this digital course!What is regression?Why do some children go through a regression during therapy?Why do some children go through a regression during primitive reflex integrat...
